10/29/2010
By: C. Kent, aka (Superman)



There is a reason it is nice to live and cycle in California and today was one of those reasons. It was a beautiful morning when I got up and went out to get the paper and it would get better as the morning moved along.

I pulled into the parking lot at Burger King and waited as 13 other riders showed up for one of our longer Friday rides. We decided right up front to break into two groups to make the ride more enjoyable for everyone. Dura-max offered to take the B group on the Laladera circuit and Gambler and Rocket would take the A group all the way to Elsinore and back. We all left together heading down Gilmore to work our way over to Kirby.


Both groups were shuffled together as we moved west on Acacia and pulled up to the light at Kirby. One of the great parts about our little group is we are very social and everyone is interested in what the other have been up to since the last time we have talked. Today we had just a little more catching to do with returning riders we hadn’t seen as much of. Highlander was back with us as was Wart and Centaur and even Benjamin, (Jack Rabbit) after a brief sabbatical.

Wart was planning on only going part way with the group so I didn’t expect him to try and stay with the pace line after it formed on Domenigoni. But the rest of the group held together rather well as we turned west off of Sanderson and made our run. I started a pull right after Warren and held on till right after the little overpass at the river crossing. When I pulled out of line everyone passed me and I found myself at the tail of a 13 rider pace line. We were still together in one big group but I knew it wouldn’t be long till we broke into two.

Sure enough as we got closer to Winchester the pace picked up and by the time Jack Rabbit was pulling we were moving along at about 24 or 25 MPH. It was about here that Dura-max would take over leading his group and the rest of us would have to commit to whatever group we were going to ride with. I could see the front three or four starting to pull away and soon I would have to make an attempt to close the gap or be completely dropped before we got to the Domenigoni saddle. After Winchester Jack Rabbit, Gambler, Centaur, Rocket, Huntress, Wolf, Surgeon and I were in the lead group and Dura-max, Sea Lion, Ruby Tuesday, T-3 and Highlander were following.

I never got close to Rocket and Gambler because in my case I can only close the gap two or three time in a day and I was all out of matches by the time we crested Domenigoni saddle. It didn’t take long for all of us to regroup and take off once again. The lead group left first and set a pretty fast pace through Sun City and passing Murrieta a lot faster than I expected. We did spread out a bit as we entered Railroad Canyon but we were all within sight of each other as we crested the first hill and within 50 yards of each other as we closed in on the freeway just before Mickey Ds in Elsinore. Dura-max took the other group over to McCall before working their way back home.
We didn’t stay very long as it seemed like everyone one more nervous energy that I have seen in some time. Even I felt pretty good considering I had enough Benadryl in me trying to counter Wednesday’s dirt and wind to make me want to take a nap whenever I sat down. As we got ready to take off were had to loosen up a little bit after even that brief stop. Soon however we were back in stride and still rolling along much faster than average. Wolf, Jack Rabbit and I pulled over to wait for Huntress at the top of Railroad Canyon because she had to stop and take a phone call. Once she caught up we latterly hammered the rest of the canyon and our speed slowly increased as started back down the last hill towards Murrieta Road. Huntress passed me and started to pull away while Jack Rabbit, Wolf and I worked together to recover from the climb.


The three of us caught every single light red as we watched Huntress slowly disappear in the east. I could just barely see her as we got back to the freeway and I couldn’t see her at all as we got back to the Domenigoni saddle. I figured I would have to hit it hard if I wanted to catch her before she got back to her truck so I took off on one of the harder runs I have made in the last year. I took the saddle in full spin and continued spinning and pushing myself as I headed for Winchester. My average speed was better than it had ever been and my legs and lungs seemed to be holding up. I knew however I would not be able to catch her if I hit one more red light or if I let up even for 50 yards because she had the hammer down. By Winchester I could just see her, by Warren I could tell what color her jersey was and thank goodness she didn’t get the light at Sanderson green. We crossed Stetson together and she backed down to give me a break as we returned to Burger King.

What can I say but it was a great day, great friends, great ride and we now have two great groups to ride with. Even when things are good they seem to be able to get better.

10/27/2010
By: C. Kent, aka (Superman)

Hemet Cycling Group Attacked Today!!!


We have been fighting the weather for the last two weeks and today was the first time the weather report gave us an open window to a good ride with little chance of interference from rain or fog. So as I got ready to leave the house I felt good about the ride I had planned for the group. It was a bit cool as I got ready to leave the house but nothing arm and leg warmers wouldn’t cover.

As we gathered in the parking lot everyone commented on what a nice day it was and by 9am we had 11 riders ready to head north towards Ramona expressway. As I looked behind me I noticed Surgeon and Wolf closing on me with Dura-max not far behind. They soon pulled even with me and we talked as we got ready to make the turn onto Lyon. I knew it wouldn’t be long before Rocket, Puma, Huntress, D’Artagnon, Cycobob, sea Lion and Wart would catch up with us so I felt good about the group being all together.


As we traveled north on Lyon we seemed to be gathering speed the farther we went. What we didn’t know was that our old enemy Mariah was waiting like a prehistoric cat for us at the foot of the hills on Gilman. And like a predator we didn’t have a clue she was going to ambush us or that she was even in the area. There was almost no wind as we passed Devonshire and still no hint at Menlo or even Cottonwood

The closer we got to Ramona the faster we seemed to be going and soon Wart, who hasn’t been riding with us for a while, fell off of the back of the train. I didn’t worry that much for two reasons, Wart knows every shortcut to every coffee shop in town and he is part of the fun group so he doesn’t always follow the same route the rest of us do anyway. The rest of stayed together till we made it to Ramona Expressway and started west towards Warren Road. Dura-max and I followed the main group of 8 by about one 150 yards. Even at that we were cruising along at about 20 to 21 MPH. It was about then I should have realized the Mariah was waiting to strike. There were signs she was hiding and ready to pounce and I mentioned it to Dura-max but it wasn’t till I turned onto Bridge Street that I knew for sure. Much like I have seen when Lions charge a heard of Antelopes Mariah hit the group in front of me in the side under the cover of dust. I couldn’t see the group because of the large dust cloud of windswept dirt and when it did clear I noticed the distance to the rest of the group was closing. As we rounded the corner on Bridge we flew straight into the teeth of a wind that had to be blowing 30 MPH with gusts.

The farther along on Bridge I rode the lower the gear selection I had to make. It turned onto a grind it out and lower your head ride fighting Mariah every inch of the way. She had more power and more weapons than simply the teeth of her force. She had dirt and sand to toss at us and Tumble weeds for us to dodge. Not all of them were bigger than we were but some were. Rest assured we knew how painful it would be if one of them managed to strike us of if we managed to run into one of them.
If we thought we were getting the upper hand on the wind by successfully getting to the end of Bridge and regrouping we were mistaken. When we started down Gilman we were riding right into the den of the dragon so to speak. Rocket took off like Saint George ready to slay that same dragon. I tried to give chase and closed a little but the ride turned into the wind wasn’t at all consistent so there was a lot of give and take in the effort. A quick look into my helmet mirror showed a sign of the other riders spread out behind me as much as ¾ of a mile back. Mariah was hitting us so hard and from several different point of the compass it was a struggle just to hold a straight-line let alone keep from falling over. It took quite a while for us to make it to Sanderson and regroup once more. We agreed to change the ride and head back to Starbucks in the mall and we then split into two groups before I watched Rocket, Puma, D’Artagnon, and Surgeon pull away leaving Huntress, Dura-max, Sea Lion, Cycobob, Wolf and I to follow back to Ramona.

Once we got back to Ramona Road it was as if we had escaped Mariah’s territory and she turned back to await the next group or riders foolish enough to try to ride along the face of the hillside on Gilman. It was hard to believe the contrast in riding conditions when we got back to Lyon. It was warm but not too warm and there was just the very lightest of breezes. It didn’t take long for us to get to Starbucks and meet up with the others that planned on stopping there. Some coffee and conversation than amounted to reliving the fight we had with the wind on Gilman and we parted and headed our separate way home promising to try again on Friday. The ride was shorted than I expected but we all made it safely and all in all we had a good time.

10/25/2010
By: C. Kent, aka (Superman)


The overcast decided to stay with us today and last night it must have rained. Originally I had heard it was going to clear out over the weekend but it seems as if the weather had different ideas. Still it was drying out and I was willing to attempt a ride if at all possible. I left the house with two layers on and tights over my cycling shorts.

I got to Burger King pretty early but Wolf was already there and Rocket wasn’t far behind. Dura-max was running a bit behind and arrived just before Cossack and Puma. It was cold, it was overcast and the wind was picking up so we could see it was going to be a small group of the faithful as we started out onto Gilmore and headed to Acacia. Soon we were in the housing tract and headed for Johnson.


It was good to have Cossack back with us after so many weeks off. While he may have been under the weather a bit and he said he felt a bit out of shape he seemed to be riding comfortably. I didn’t know if we would break into two groups or not because I had no idea what kind of wind we might run into out on Donmenigoni. All I could tell was at that moment we were all together and the temperature wasn’t as cold as I expected.

We finally got over to Sanderson and headed for Domenigoni with just a bit more traffic than I was used to when we started earlier in the day. But it didn’t bother us and we made the turn west and headed for Winchester slowly picking up speed as the wind hit us pretty much on the side. The problem with the winds on Domenigoni is they never seem to stay on your side they almost always turn to hit you in the face and after my attempt at a pull I was pretty tired. By Warren Road I fell back and watched as Puma, Rocket and Cossack started to pull away. I got back on rockets wheel before Winchester but he was either running out of time or had burned too much fuel by the time we got to Leon with all of his pulling so he left us and headed for the barn. I watched Puma and Cossack head for the saddle and fell back to ride with Wolf and Dura-max.

It didn’t take us long to get over the saddle and then west to Bradley and it didn’t take us long to work our way over to McCall from Newport. Once we were headed back east again the wind didn’t seem like it was as much of a problem. Well at least it didn’t bother us much as we climbed McCall and got ready to head down the back side towards Winchester. We were moving along easily as we got to Simpson and rode passed Briggs Street when Puma flatted. Personally I like being to take a break as he changed his tube but soon we were back on our way and heading back towards Leon again.

With a smaller group it was decided it would be a good day to give the little coffee shop at the air port a try to see if it would make a good place for the group to stop for coffee sometime. We regrouped at the end of the dump road and finally turned north on Winchester and east again on Stowe. The only time the wind didn’t bother us was heading north, every other direction simply drained us a bit as we moved along.

Only Cossack, Puma and I stopped at the coffee shop because both Wolf and Dura-max had other appointments to attend to. Three of us checked out the place and decided it was big enough for the group because on a nice day there is a lot of seating outside. The coffee was good, the service was friendly and they forced us to sample some peach cobbler that was absolutely excellent. I know the wind was supposed to pick up this afternoon so I am glad it didn’t get any worse while we were out this morning. It was still a good ride and we didn’t get wet.

10/22/2010
By: C. Kent, aka (Superman)



We did manage to get in a reasonable ride on Monday but by the afternoon it started to rain, and not some light drizzle but some serious hard rain. It didn’t quit Tuesday but they suggested it might let up by Wednesday. It didn’t let up Wednesday even if I managed to get in 15 miles by myself. It still rained off and on Thursday so I was looking forward to getting out and getting in a good ride today. When I got up to get the paper the streets looked wet but they looked like they were starting to dry out so I went back in and got my riding kit out so I would be ready to ride by 8:30.


I got to Burger King and Dura-max was waiting and Rocket was just riding down the street towards us. Double time pulled up and D’Artagnon and Gambler arrived a few minutes later. To my surprise Sea Lion rolled up just as we were getting ready to leave. At 9am we pulled out onto Gilmore and saw Shadow waiting for us on the other side of Florida. Once we picked him up we quickly ran down Acacia to Kirby and then turned towards Sanderson.

After we started down Sanderson heading to Domenigoni it seemed like we were full of energy from not riding much the week before. It was also good to see Shadow back with us for today’s ride. After changing the start time it was my hope he would be able make it so I was glad for the opportunity to ride with him today.

Double Time took us onto Domenigoni and we formed a pace line heading towards Warren road. We changed places a few times before Sea Lion decided he had tested his recover well enough and left us at Warren Road. As we drew closer to Winchester Gambler, D’Artagnon and Rocket picked up the pace and soon we were closing in on Domenigoni saddle. Rocket and Gambler kicked it up another notch and crested the saddle first. The rest of us joined then shortly and we got ready to head down the other side and head for Sun City.

Rocket decided not to burn anymore fuel so he turned off at Linderburger and left the rest of us to get to LaLadera by ourselves. We more or less regrouped as we rode passed the public park on LaLadera and made quick work of the street as we passed the owl habitat. Up to this point it had been rather cool but there was a complete cloud cover above us all the way. As we cruised past the ground owls it looked like there was just a hint of the sun breaking through the clouds and it might have been getting warmer. Not warm enough to take off arm warmers or leg warmers but warmer none the less.

Gambler and D’Artagnon pushed us over to McCall and then started up the hill in a rush. Shadow chased Gambler to the top where they waited for the rest of us. Once over the hill we soon found ourselves on Simpson and heading for Leon. As we approached the dump road Gambler and D’Artagnon picked up speed once again and it was all I could do to hang on as we topped t rise and made the sprint towards Winchester.

As I turned onto Winchester and headed for Chris’s Gambler, D’Artagnon and Dura-max turned the other way and headed for home. Double time, Shadow and I grabbed some coffee and talked about the pace we had been setting all the way to the rest stop. Double Time wanted to ride back down Simpson when we started home so we did. I got home after a great ride at a pace much faster than I had expected and another 39 miles to add to my yearly total. I will admit I am glad t be part of this group and to consider them as friends.

10/18/2010
By: C. Kent, aka (Superman)




This is the time of year when we have to watch the weather closely and try to see if we have enough time to get in a ride or stay home and clean our bike. I started watching the weather reports on Saturday both on TV and on the computer. I am beginning to understand what a cut off low is and how it can lead to rain even when it isn’t that cold. So I was not surprised to see that it had rained overnight and it was at least clearing slightly when I went out to get the paper this morning. I dressed warmly and headed for the door about 8:30 noticing the streets were just starting to dry.

I rode to Burger King on my back up Jamis because I was pretty sure I was going to get dirty. By the time I pulled into the parking lot I could see my chain stay was already coated with road grime. Dura-max was waiting for me as I pulled up and I noticed Wolf was unloading his bike on the other side of the parking lot. A black Tahoe pulled up and when the window rolled down we say Ocelot who had stopped by to wish us well as she picked up breakfast. Puma pulled up and started to unload his bike just as Ruby Tuesday parked her bike next to the wall. I was expecting both Quicksticks and Bounty Hunter but only Bounty Hunter pulled up. By 9am six of us were ready to head down Gilmore and start the run to Cactus Valley.


We were in a bit of a hurry to get over to Kirby and then to Sanderson in an attempt to beat any rain. We were in luck as we quickly made it to Domenigoni and headed for State Street where we planned to turn south and make a run for Cactus Valley. We didn’t go all that far before we saw Sherpa coming towards us on State. He turned around and caught up with us as we got to the Diamond Valley Golf Course. He took the lead as we hit the hill at Sage and Cactus Valley and sprinted to the top of the hill.

Wolf was coming on strong when he tossed a chain and had to catch up after replacing it onto the chain ring. We regrouped at the end of the pavement and got ready to head back down to Stetson and then east where I thought we would see Quicksticks.

We rode down State to McSweeney and then back out onto State all the way to Chambers then Thornton and finally Santa Fe and Stetson. We lost Bounty Hunter at Girard and the rest of us continued on to Columbia and then Crest before coming back on Stetson and heading towards Fairview. A few drops of water hit us but nothing to slow us down to the point where we wanted to call the ride off.
Sherpa and Puma took off on a sprint and left the rest of us to follow onto Fairview and then head south to the housing track at Wilson Mesa and then made the run back to Florida where we were planning on having coffee at Carl’s. Ruby Tuesday took off for home as we passed Stetson again and five of us made it to Carl’s without any problems. I for one was looking forward to some hot coffee and as we sat down Ocelot stopped by to visit with us before we headed back to Burger King. Dura-max left us at Park and Puma, Sherpa, Wolf and I continued on to Devonshire.

We got back to the west side of town and I said my goodbyes before heading for Lyon with Sherpa. The ride itself was only supposed to be 33 miles but with my ride to and from Burger King I ended up with 37 miles. It turned out to be a great ride and a good workout for a Monday. I honestly enjoy the company of this group about as much as I enjoy the rides themselves. When I think about having to miss a ride because of rain I know I can always make up the miles another day but I know I will miss to conversation and company of the group and that is something I cannot recover.

10/15/2010
By: C. Kent, aka (Superman)




Watching the weather reports Thursday night wasn’t the most encouraging thing I had seen all week. They indicated we would have an onshore flow with a deep marine layer and cooling temperatures. I had to wonder how deep and how much cooler? When I got up to retrieve the news paper I could see we had what almost looked like fog just 50 to 100 feet in the air. It was cool but not cold and there was just a chance that we might get just a bit if drizzle out of this clouds. Still it was dry and I had leg warmers and a long sleeve jersey so I was ready to go and looking forward to a good ride today. I could only hope I had a few other riders that were looking forward to it as much as I was. I was pleased when quite a few did show up.


We were just a bit late leaving the parking lot and it seemed as if we were just a touch lethargic as we headed passed Pep-Boys and turned out onto Latham. But we started to warm up a bit after we got out onto Lyon and headed north towards Ramona Road. We have a pretty strong group for a Friday with Gambler, Huntress, Valkyrie, Dura-max, Double Time, Bandit, Rocket, Jeff, (D’Artagnan) Bo, (Buccaneer) and I. At least I felt pretty strong as we turned onto Ramona Road.

At least it wasn’t drizzling as we headed for Sanderson. The streets were still dry but the overcast still wasn’t burning off so we kept a watchful eye on the weather just in case we had to bail out before making it to warren and Ramona Expressway. The clouds seem to have lifted a bit when we looked up Lambs Canyon and it did seem a bit lighter in the west so what I expected was we would be making a hard run west on Ramona Expressway and regroup at the gas station on Lakeview. What I didn’t expect was how easily Valkyrie and Huntress would drop me after I pulled out of the lead from taking my turn at pulling.

To tell the truth it didn’t take a lot to pull out of sight because I don’t think we had 200 yards of sight with the fog today. In fact by 100 yards it was hard to see anything more than just an outline or a rider in front of you. Dura-max and I fell to the back of the pack and more or less cruised at 18 to 20 all the way to Lakeview. We did gain a bit on one or two of the outlines in front of us but still we pulled in after everyone else was stopped at the gas station and regrouped.

We took off again towards Nuevo road on Lakeview and soon found ourselves rolling along at 19 to 21 MPH before regrouping on the downhill heading towards Menifee. The group broke in half at Menifee with Bandit, Gambler, Rocket, Buccaneer, D’Artagnan in the lead group and Double Time, Huntress, Valkyrie, Dura-max and I following. We made short work of Menifee, turned on Mapes and then on Brigs and finally turned on Grand before getting to Winchester and stopping at Chris’s for coffee and conversation.

Dura-max and Rocket pulled us back up Winchester to Stowe as we headed for home. The cool weather was still with us and I found myself pushing pretty hard just trying to stay on the wheel of D’Artagnan as he followed Bandit and Gambler onto Stowe. We made the turn east and slowly but surely the pace picked up till we were once again cruising along about 19 or 20. About halfway down Stowe we noticed Shadow coming towards us and he made a turn to follow us back east.

I turned onto California with Rocket and Dura-max and we ran pretty hard all the way to Warren where I lost Rocket and he put the hammer down to head for home. We all regrouped at the airport and turned onto Stetson together. With the addition of Shadow we still had 10 riders and we made the turn into the Lowes parking lot before 10:45

Being so close to the end of the ride I reflected on how nice the ride turned out to be even on such an overcast day. The A group seems to be building and the B group seems to be getting tighter so it looks like we are doing pretty well. I did get in close to 40 miles today so my mileage for the month looks better than I expected. I had 700 miles last month but I wasn’t expecting much this month because we had a few wet days.

Still the group was still looking strong as we got ready to pull onto Acacia and Double Time took off for Burger King like he still had plenty of energy to burn. I stopped to talk with Huntress, Valkyrie, Double Time and Shadow before heading for home. I am pretty sure it is the social connection our group has that makes us one of the best groups to ride with in the area. Yes we can be competitive but we are also more than willing to help each other out, even if it means the person you help my become a better rider than you are.

10/11/2010
By: C. Kent, aka (Superman)



As the sun came up this morning I could see we were going to have another great day. I was also feeling pretty good and was looking forward to an energetic ride. Normally I don’t like climbs but today I was planning on doing better at climbing and still have some juice left over. With that in mind I left the house and headed for Burger King.

I could tell by the look on everyone’s face they considered today’s ride a challenge. We would be heading west to Winchester before making the turn east towards the Marina. I know some don’t care for climbing but we still had a few flat straight runs for pace line work. So as we pulled out of the parking lot and worked our way over to Kirby we were 12 strong and moving along at a good pace. We had a strong A group and a good B group and it was divided pretty evenly.


Rocket, Gambler, Bandit, Bounty Hunter, Double Time and Wolf were in the A group and Duramax, T-3, Ocelot, Valkyrie, Cycobob and I were in the B group. We held the whole group together till we got out onto Stetson and made the turn onto California. I was surprised to see Valkyrie and Double Time take the turn onto California with the A group. I found myself way in the back of a quickly receding pack.
It was a lot of work but I did manage to get with the lead group before they made it to Winchester and Stowe. We all pulled into the parking lot at the corner of Stowe together and only had to wait for a few minutes at most for everyone to regroup. The next stop was going to be down Winchester to Domenigoni to the Marina. The A group started to pull away and I fell back with the B group and turned on Domenigoni. We picked up Double Time and Wolf so the group was split in half.

By the time we got to the Marina entrance Rocket, Gambler and Bandit were already starting up the hill while Bounty Hunter and Valkyrie were waiting for us. The rest of us started up the hill about the time Rocket, Bandit and Gambler were on their way down. The rest of us made it up and started back down a few minutes later. We regrouped at the bottom of the hill where we were joined by Huntress.
Huntress took off and we followed her all the way to State Street where she was joined by the rest of the A group as they once again pulled away and headed for the golf course and then to Stetson. The rest of us followed a few minutes later and turned east on Stetson before turning again on Girard and up the hill to Ramona Bowl. The climb was deceptive and longer than it looks by car but we made it and regrouped at the top before heading out the back side of the bowl towards Crest. We lost Rocket and Bounty Hunter at this point and followed Gambler and Bandit through the houses and once again watched as they pulled away with Huntress. The rest of us stayed together all the way to Lake Street.

We traveled down Stetson and caught up with T-3 who was heading towards Bautista Canyon. The rest of our group made the turn onto Fairview and headed down to Florida. We caught up with Huntress, Gambler and Bandit at Mayberry where Gambler was changing a flat. We continued on to Florida and once again Huntress, Gambler and Bandit pulled around me and pulled away heading for the ranger station. Wolf and I started to give chase but we just had too much distance to make up and we watched as they pulled into the ranger station ahead of us. Turns out Valkyrie was already there.

I managed to catch a wheel on the way back and followed Gambler and Bandit back to Carl’s. It turned into a hard run and I was glad to take a break and have something cold to drink before heading for home with Double Time, Wolf, Cycobob, Duramax and Ocelot. It was starting to get hot and I looked down at my computer and saw it was 98 degrees. A week ago we had cold wet weather and this week it has been hot and dry by the afternoon. Duramax and Ocelot left us at Park and the rest of us continued on west towards home.

After turning on Park we easily rode passed the Goats, Sheep and Zebras that one of the big houses has. We continued on to Columbia and then onto Devonshire. From this point on it is pretty much all downhill back to Burger King. After a few blocks Valkryie left us for home and we continued on passed the hospital and then to Santa Fe.

I rode with the last three riders back to Palm and decided to turn for home. It was bouncing between 96 and 100 degrees and I wanted to get home and get into the shower as soon as possible. I noticed I had just about 43 miles on the computer and my average Heart Rate was still less than 122. As I had hoped it was a good ride and challenging as well.

10/11/2010
By: C. Kent, aka (Superman)


Just planning for today was a pleasure. The weather was getting better and I was feeling better and it was my Birthday. Well it was Bounty Hunter’s birthday as well so it should be a double great day. I determined early on to just go out and enjoy myself and that is just what I planned on doing.

I got to Burger King to greet Duramax, Rocket and Ocelot and I could see Ben and Wolf unloading their bikes. It was still early when Sherpa, Surgeon, T-3 and Bounty Hunter showed up and Valkyrie pulled her truck into the parking lot. Hit man and Mark were the last to arrive. Today I already knew who would be making the full ride and who would be leaving early. I knew Duramax would lead Ocelot and T-3 on the bypass and I knew that Sherpa would be leaving us in Marietta so there was absolutely no reason for me to not ride with the big boys for the day.

We moved down Gilmore and made the first turn on Acacia and the next turn on Kirby all together. I received a call from Quicksticks so I was pretty sure we were going to see him out on Domenigoni. We moved through the houses after turning off of Kirby and headed for Johnson and Sanderson. As we got to Sanderson Rocket and Bounty Hunter slowly moved to the front of the group. I didn’t know how fast they intended to ride once we started west but I was going to do everything I could to hold on.

Once we did hit Domenigoni the pace line formed and soon we were moving along at about 20 MPH. People took turns pulling and by Warren Road we were cruising at about 23. It seems as if each leader picked it up a bit till we were moving along at close to 25. Now the group started to spread out and I simply kept my head down till we got to Winchester where we finally saw Quicksticks. We stopped to help him fix a flat and Sherpa left us to ride to an appointment.
Duramax, Ocelot and T-3 left next planning on turning at Laladera. As we were putting the tire back on Quicksticks bike Valkyrie pulled away and we gave chase shortly after. We didn’t get far because Quicksticks had another flat within the first half mile. By this time we had lost Surgeon, Valkyrie, Duramax, Ocelot, Sherpa, and T-3. With the group we lad left I knew the ride to Goetz was going to be a quick one.
The Goetz Climb turned out to be faster than we normally do it and the ride back over to McCall was fast as well because I noticed that even after the climb we had an average speed over 17.3. We crested McCall and headed for the housing tract at the bottom of the hill.

I can’t believe how well I felt today. The whole group seemed like it was clicking and we were working together and looking out for each other. At least I thought we were as we headed towards Simpson. We more or less recollected all of the remaining riders and settled into a steady pace together.

We got to Chris’s before 10am and took the time to talk and get to know each other better. I had some coffee and an energy bar and we talked cycling, bikes, and told war stories. It was even better because Shadow was with us by this time and we hadn’t ridden with him for months. So we pulled out onto Winchester and headed for Stowe. Just before we got to Stowe I noticed Casey Jones sitting on the side of the road watching us go by. As we made the turn onto Stowe I fell back to talk with Ben and Bounty Hunter just as I watched Casey Jones come flying by. After the climbs we had today I didn’t know if anyone was even interested in giving chase but I gather that Hit Man and Mark did and Shadow started to take off. But I didn’t see if they ever caught him because before I could get up to speed I watched Rocket fly by me going back in the other direction. He went to retrieve a water Bottle Mark dropped and I waited at California and Stowe for him. Still I got in 45 miles by the time I got home.

Once again it was a good day and a good ride to be with good people. I am glad we live where we do and I am glad that I know the people I know. It turns out that Valkyrie had decided to go to Clinton Keith road so we got back first but I let her know we were only a phone call away. That is just the kind of group we have.